Ukraine-Russia talks in Abu Dhabi end without a confirmed result after meeting lasting less than two hours

The latest meeting between the Ukrainian and Russian delegations in Abu Dhabi lasted less than two hours and ended without any clear result being announced. The two-day talks were held with the mediation of the United States.

Neither Kyiv nor Moscow has said whether the negotiations made progress. It was the first direct meeting between representatives of the two countries since February and took place amid renewed efforts by the US administration to end the war in Ukraine.

Separate consultations were also held in Abu Dhabi with representatives of Germany, France, the United Kingdom, Italy, NATO and the European Union. They were not part of the trilateral negotiations between the US, Ukraine and Russia.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky had earlier said that Moscow claims to have also taken control of half of the part of Donbas still held by Ukraine. According to Zelensky, the Ukrainian delegation responded: “We don’t know where you’re getting such claims from. We have video footage, photographs and other evidence showing that these territories are still under our control.”

Zelensky described the difference between the parties’ accounts as one of the main obstacles to the negotiations and said that the Kremlin leader, Vladimir Putin, “lives in a different reality.”

Meanwhile, diplomatic efforts did not stop the attacks. Russia launched new drone strikes in several regions of Ukraine, damaging energy infrastructure, homes, schools and kindergartens.